Op-ed: The current Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby is no stranger to making UK headlines.

To be fair many of his 'contentious' shared views are often inflated by the British MSM, possibly in order to attract readers and pay the bills, but should this man by interfering in the politics of the UK?

He called for a "visionary debate" on the EU referendum and said there was no "correct Christian view" on the vote.

Meanwhile, former Labour prime minister Tony Blair told the BBC the UK's destiny was to "lead in Europe".

The archbishop said he felt the debate was not yet addressing questions about the UK's role in the world.

The pomp and wealth of the church

But of course in the mix of those running scared of refugees and migrants there are a fair number of racists.

The UK is a strange country and I say that looking from within.

As a child in fifties Britain church going was a regular and a given in our family but even back then that was not the norm in our working-class area of the city.

The number of people attending our local church each Sunday was not bad but already the writing was on the wall and numbers dwindling. Ultimately the congregation featured an uneven balance of older believers and as they shuffled off like so many other churches empty pews became the norm.

One of our parish churches became the first place of residence for Hull Truck Theatre the other, St Jude's where I was confirmed was demolished and an Iceland freezer store built on the site.

But by and large many British people still claim the UK is a Christian country and as my Mum used to say being a good Christian person has little to do with going to church.

Each week as our congregation gathered outside after the service too many worshippers, mainly women, would already be back-biting.

So like Mum I think being a good Christian is many things though for all I know if God exists he may have a different viewpoint.

For me being a good Christian is about how we live, treat each other; respond to others' needs and the problems of others and more.

In 2016 we are not so much citizens of the UK or USA or Spain or wherever but citizens of the World.

Mr Welby may have wanted to share his thoughts on the refugee crisis but I can only ever imagine Our Lord Jesus Christ welcoming all, forgiving those that needed forgiveness and putting the nation's wealth and other worldly considerations on the back burner.

What HE would make our foreign interference that has toppled regime leaders to suit, wrecked countries and led to the current people crisis I can probably imagine.

Religious hypocrisy is yet another reason to be a non-believer; I sometimes wonder if people like the Pope and the Archbishop know religions are based on fantasy and so know they have nothing to fear from breaking the 'rules'.

Welby and other Christians face a tough old time as they try to embrace 21st Century life and adapt their beliefs to encompass gay rights, abortion and more.

Look up Christianity though and one basic definition is "the religion based on the person and teachings of Jesus Christ, or its beliefs and practices."

That shows Christianity is a no ifs, no buts, ideology when it comes to acts of loving kindness to all.

Archbishop Welby is of course right to question whether the British government is putting the necessary resources in place to cope with an increased population but as we know our Tory government is not doing this even for British citizens.

We may all have an opinion to share on the matter but he speaks as a representative of the Church of England and in reality politics and religion do not mix.

Religious representatives such as Mr Welby are seated in the House of Lords but how much he and his like should be involved in modern day politics is debateable.

Ahead of the up coming EU in or out referendum many people are coming out of the woodwork to share their views but some simply muddy the issue.

I often have discussions (debates,arguments) with my parents about the Archbishop involving himself in political discourse.
My Mum feels the two should be separate,whereas I view that,if laws and behaviour are immoral,then politicians can be held to account,especially if we're looking at the Bedroom Tax (or Spare Room Subsidy as it is also termed);increased homelessness;cuts to social care services;cuts to benefits to poorer,less able and elderly;"fall charges" to the elderly.
All of these are decisions that bring out a moral response,and Archbishop Welby has in the past questioned some of this (a little timidly at times,but at least he has).
The language used recently needed to be more nuanced,as otherwise I wonder who it is who is being attracted to the church.
If Archbishop Welby had spoken of concerns "not necessarily" being racist,it would have made some sense,as some people don't have an antipathy towards other cultures,but do worry about how effectively social care,mental health or disability services can be run in the face of the present political and economic climate.
My perspective is that a pretty bleak game is being played here with a cynical flourish by our political leaders of cutting social care & mental health funds;increasing homelessness & using language of compassion ("some of these people are refugees,and we have a place for them") and condemnation ("most of these people are economic migrants") to create a confused and uncomfortable dissonance with the public of pity and divisive contempt.
It is sad to see a moral leader compromise themselves with such a simple take on events.

Reply

Eileen

11/3/2016 06:21:55 pm

Thanks for reading and commenting.

You made your points very well. And in the end we agree. Christianity should not be compromised by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

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